December 8, 2020
With many continuing to work remotely for the foreseeable future, new insights from Sharp claim that a significant number of European office workers are concerned for their career prospects, with over half (51 percent) anxious about issues such as keeping skills up to date, lack of training and career opportunities when thinking long term about the future of work. (more…)
December 8, 2020
The Commercial Park Group, a partnership between Sir Robert McAlpine and the John Baker Group, has announced it will invest £200 million to kick-start developments of two million sq ft of new offices across locations in the south east of England. (more…)
December 3, 2020
December 2, 2020
Cornerstone OnDemand, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSOD), has announced the formation of the Cornerstone Innovation Lab for AI, a new centre of excellence within the company composed of data scientists and machine learning experts who specialise in innovating practical and ethical ways to apply AI technology to the workplace. (more…)
December 1, 2020
The repercussions of Covid-19 for the small business community have been particularly ruinous. Recent figures paint a worrying picture, revealing that approximately 76,300 SMEs in London alone ceased operations completely as a direct result of the pandemic, with lockdowns costing from £30,000 to £75,000 for one in ten small businesses. As the most vulnerable business segment in the current crisis, SMEs needed the biggest support and, by the end of April, had already received over £4 billion via the government’s CBIL scheme. (more…)
November 30, 2020
Union body the TUC has today launched a new taskforce to look at the “creeping role” of artificial intelligence (AI) in managing people at work. The taskforce launch comes as a new TUC report, Technology managing people: the worker experience, claims that many workers have concerns over the use of AI and technology in the workplace. (more…)
November 30, 2020
Earlier this month, in a sudden and unexpected turn of events, the prime minister’s chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, walked out of 10 Downing Street for the last time, having resigned/been asked to leave, depending on whose account of the episode you believe. However, the affair unfolded in reality, it seems clear that the departure of Cummings and Director of Communications, Lee Cain, was precipitated by workplace conflict and a series of internal disagreements, which had pushed their relationships with certain colleagues to breaking point. (more…)
November 27, 2020
November 24, 2020
The UK’s digital skills gap could pose a risk to economic recovery, new research from Microsoft claims, with over three-quarters of UK leaders citing a large digital talent pool as essential to driving UK competitiveness. The study, Unlocking the UK’s potential with digital skills, was conducted in partnership with Dr Chris Brauer at Goldsmiths, University of London to assess the UK’s skills gap and provide practical guidance for organisations on how to tackle it. It predicts the rise of a “Next Gen Worker” that is empowered by low-code and no-code technology, but also finds that a failure to embrace technological skills could leave companies struggling to compete on the global stage. (more…)
November 24, 2020
Poise by Bisley is part of the new Belong collection, which has been developed to transcend both the traditional office and homeworking environments. The Poise range consists of a variety of desking and table options, which can either be used as stand-alone pieces of furniture or sit together to form a cohesive office setting. Calling on Bisley’s heritage in workplace innovation, all have been designed in response to the events of 2020, seamlessly adapting to fit either the home or a commercial office environment. (more…)
November 23, 2020
The construction of new offices in central London has declined by half (50 percent) in six months as developers and occupiers shift their focus to refurbishment, according to Deloitte Real Estate’s latest London Office Crane Survey. The crane survey analysed office building data over the six months to 30 September, and included a poll of London’s biggest developers conducted at the end of September. The total office space under construction in central London is now 15.1 million sq ft. This is similar to the level recorded in the previous survey (15.3 million sq ft, the highest since 2002) as developments are now taking longer to complete. (more…)
A new think tank has launched today to mark the United Nations’ International Day of Persons with a Disability. Called ‘
A new scheme for rating the operational energy efficiency of UK offices, NABERS UK, has been launched.
December 2, 2020
Creative firms have most to lose from a loss of serendipity
by Gary Chandler • Comment, Workplace design